How the Right Processes Can Create Customer Success “Wow” Moments
In the customer success world, processes are king. Having a structured way of doing things is the only way many customer success teams can actually get everything done in the day, let alone make sure nothing specific for individual customers slips through the cracks. While these processes are important, they also can sometimes leave the customer engagement process feeling sterile and ‘formulaic’ because, well, it’s based off a formula.
This balancing act is where some customer success teams have problems. While these processes are key to reaching goals and customer milestones, delivering amazing, personalized customer experiences are also incredibly important. So how can customer success teams achieve both? The secret is using processes as a means of achieving these ‘wow’ moments.
What is a ‘Wow’ Moment?
Delivering a wow moment to a consumer means going the extra mile or going out of your way to show your appreciation and recognition of your customer’s value. This doesn’t mean signing into a scheduled call a few minutes early. A wow moment really goes above and beyond. It could be sending them a customer appreciation gift ‘just because’ or offering them an additional service free of charge.
Wow moments are what turn everyday clients into your top customers. A wow moment can create a customer reference, spur an account renewal, or even prompt an unsolicited endorsement from a customer’s CEO. Creating wow moments for customers goes beyond the role of a customer success manager (CSM). It’s part of a company’s customer-driven culture and commitment to excellence.
How Processes Can Help Create Wow Moments
While at first it may seem as though processes and procedures are the antitheses of wow moments, they can actually be a catalyst to create and sustain these wow moments. It all comes down to building these processes with wow moments in mind. So, instead of robotically going through the motions and checking boxes with a customer because that is what procedure tells you to do, CSMs can move through the stages of a process while looking for ‘wow potential’ to focus on.
Three Examples of Customer Success Wow Process Creation:
1. Assigning Metrics that Warrant a Wow Moment
Assigning metrics to what warrants a ‘wow moment’. If CSMs had it their way, every customer would be their number one customer, and they all deserve wow moments. While this is certainly true and obviously an ideal scenario, it’s also not scalable or financially viable, especially for growing teams. Instead, customer success teams can put a process in place to measure and grade customer accounts to determine if they’re ready for a wow moment (such as a free service or gift) and what the return on this gesture will be.
2. Personalizing Engagement, Conversation, and Collaboration with Customers
Personalizing engagement, conversation, and collaboration with customers. As we mentioned above, processes can sometimes make customer interactions with a CSM or onboarding team feel rehearsed and robotic. Wow moments are what break up this monotony and provide the personalized touch customers are looking for. When personalization and wowing customers are part of your onboarding process instead of an add-on or extra, engagement and excitement go hand-in-hand with learning and professionalism.
3. Identify Creative and Effective Ways to Wow Customers
Identifying creative and effective ways to wow customers. While no two customer accounts are alike, many CSMs have been in the same position as their peers and are happy to share information and ideas. With a back-end documentation and information sharing process, CSMs can come up with truly creative ways to wow customers, from free gifts to exclusive invitations to product upgrades. A back-end process also helps CSMs keep track of what they’ve already provided customers with so there is no risk of duplication.
Drive Customer Satisfaction with Wow Moments
Hunting down and focusing on wow moments doesn’t mean you need to throw your processes to the wind. The best CSMs are the ones that can get customers from point A to point B – all the while going over the critical information they need to know – while delivering amazing, personalized experiences. These wow moments are what drive customer satisfaction and, ultimately, retention.
Blog Posts:
The Outcome Customer Success Journey
Experiences Before Stages – How to Build Your Customer Experience Journey
eBooks:
Ultimate Guide to SaaS Customer Success Metrics
Customer Success as a Culture: Customer Success Leaders Edition
Learn more about how ClientSuccess can help your company develop a strong Customer Success methodology and strategy with easy-to-use customer success software by requesting a 30-minute demo.